


Secret Places

by orphan_account



Category: Cinderella 2015
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-09-04
Updated: 2015-09-04
Packaged: 2018-04-18 23:19:46
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,091
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4724000
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Kit shows Ella some of the hidden passages of the palace and she opens up about her doubts concerning the wedding night.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Secret Places

The panel slid aside with an audible click, and Ella suppressed a gasp of surprise. She had merely mentioned that she sometimes wished that there was a way to avoid all the crowds of bustling courtiers and servants. Kit turned back to her with a triumphant smile, gesturing to the slight gap in the elaborately carved and painted wall. 

“I’ve always wanted to show you the hidden passages.” He grinned and Ella laughed. He had promised so, one night when the subject rose (Ella had doubted the existence of such things) and she had struggled to conceal her eagerness. “You look apprehensive, my lady.” Kit murmured, a question in his tone. “Don’t you trust me?”

“I’ve been in this room before.” Ella replied, shaking her head. “I..” She was bewildered by this new development. The practice ballroom, where Ella and Kit had been rehearsing their wedding feast’s opening dance (la valse de l'amour), was far away from the royal apartments and neither had really felt very prepared to be under the scrutiny of the public eye. Right now, they were too caught up in each other, too at peace with the world - and, quite frankly, too dishevelled to not raise questions (although the reasons behind their dishevelment were completely innocent). 

“Soon enough, my love, you will know these little architectural secrets just as well as I do.” Kit promised, understanding her befuddlement. “When I found out that the statue of Athena opened up the back of an alcove when you pulled the spear..” He remembered the day well. “As a seven year old, I was dangerously curious and found myself lost very quickly in the piece.” Ella raised an inquiring eyebrow, and Kit hurried to assure her of their safety. “I would never take you into one of the passages I’m not confident in, my love.“ 

“Then what are we waiting for?” She asked, taking her betrothed’s offered hand, and stepping into the darkened chamber beyond the walls. Kit followed her with a lit candle, and the room was bathed in a warm glow of light. It was desolate, lacking in even the blessing of wood panels to conceal the bare stone walls, and devoid of any source of natural light. “They’ll wonder where we went.” She murmured, watching as Kit replaced the panel. 

“You have a history of disappearing, remember?” He joked in good nature, closing the space between them. “It’s not wholly unheard of.”

“It looks so sad.” Ella declared after a short pause, unsure of how to respond to his playful teasing. “The emptiness.” Kit knew what she meant by it, the staleness of the air having a way of haunting you. Even in some of the more commonly known rooms of the palace, the aura was present, the sense of worthlessness and disuse. 

“The stairs are nice.” He offered lamely, physically cringing at the weak remark. She only gave him a warm, encouraging smile. 

“Stairs are often very intriguing artworks.” She laughed, moving to the small and unimpressive spiral staircase to the side of the room. “I suppose these halls were for the servants, once upon a time.” Most newer houses had separate corridors for the household staff, to avoid contact between servants and masters, bringing back a once outdated custom. 

“We shall find out.” Was his vague reply, Ella knowing he had been here countless times before (he had said he would never take her into places he wasn’t familiar with, and that was the summary of his attitude towards exploration - adventures were to be handled with care when loved ones were concerned). Ella, however, chose to ignore his avoidance of the answer, and made a very quick decision to ascend the flight of steps (rather than descend, which was also an option). Below her feet she could not make out anything through the darkness, but overhead pale, autumn sunlight could be seen far, far above. Kit followed her lead with no objections. 

They passed a landing or two, enough for Ella to frown in confusion - surely there were not so many floors? Still, she continued on until she found the source of light, and was confused by what she saw. The stairs came to an end on the floor, the first to be fitted with windows, and the low ceiling was the second thing Ella noticed, the first being the ghostly stillness of the atmosphere. The third was the creaking floor boards that reminded her of an attic, but not so much when she saw it was a corridor. All of a sudden, despite her husband-to-be being the king of the land and therefore lord of everything in it, she felt like an intruder, like she was stepping into someone else’s life. The feeling passed, however, when she felt his warmth at her back and she smiled anew. 

“It’s strange, isn’t it?” Kit breathed by her ear. “A whole complex of rooms abandoned and forgotten.”

“What’s in the rooms?” She asked him gently. 

“Nothing. I think they were the Captain of the Guard’s rooms, or at least his family’s, a long time ago, maybe before my grandfathers reign.” He could sense Ella stiffen, the same thought striking him in that instant. They were most certainly dead. “Hey.” He gave her a little nudge, his hand slipping into hers. “I have something to show you.” Ella was grateful for the distraction. 

Kit lead her down the corridor, where an old ladder was leant up against a wall, and (without having to leap and jump for the cord as he had once) he pulled a trap door down from above, the unexpected sunlight causing Ella to blink rapidly. 

“After you.” He urged with a smile, nodding as he moved the ladder into place, more out of chivalry than practicality. Ella shook her head and gestured for him to go up first, which he swiftly did. Was it strange to note how elegantly he clambered up the ladder? Yes, yes it probably was. When it was her turn, she only reached halfway before he had looped his arms around her, hoisting her up into the day, and, despite the heavy materials of her dress, he did it with ease. 

Now, the proper thing to do once the intimate (but necessary) act of politeness was performed was for Kit to immediately release her of his hold, but he (most likely without even noticing it) prolonged the embrace they had found themselves in when her feet touched the roof floor). Ella couldn’t even take in the surroundings, too focused was she on evening her constricted breathing. He was drowning in her eyes, her perfect eyes that changed colour as he watched them. He often heard disdaining comments concerning brown eyes, but he was more enchanted by the colour than ever as he watched the hazel eyes swirl into different tinges of honey, almond and nutmeg. 

Their entangled breaths must have stirred the short strands of hair that fell down by her face, having loosened from the bun at the base of her neck, and Kit moved to tuck them back into place, a gentle hand slowly caressing her face in the process. The whole hand wasn’t necessary, his thumbs smoothing back the stray hairs in a circular motion, and all Ella could notice was the feel of his skin against her face, searing into her cheeks and she feared he would be discomforted by the sudden flaming heat that brightened her once pale flesh.

“Ella..” His voice said it all, his love for her and the stirrings within him, the adoring way his eyes latched onto her own nothing compared to breathy sigh that escaped him. It was as though he was desperate to express his feelings for her, a man drowning in his own love, and it made Ella shake. Ella, without even thinking of what she might be entering into, claimed his lips and threw her arms about his neck, her weight stabilised by his hastened hold on her back. The kiss that ensued was one far more passionate than any other that had come before, both individuals struggling for a way to communicate their shared feelings of love and lust, words too common for such deep connections. 

“Kit…” The involuntary moan was inspired by her loves relocation as they broke apart for breath, lips almost lazily dragging across her skin to jawline, her neck. Her hands reacted before her own mind did, roughing up his hair (undoing, no doubt, a considerable amount of time and care) and pulling at his collar, searching for his skin beneath the jacket. It was only when she made sense of her own hands, when she brushed her nails against the top of his chest (now made accessible by her endeavours) and found his hands on her abdomen, moving up and down every so often, not going any higher than her waistline or any lower than her hipbone. 

By then, someone would have considered her to be physically powerless, even if she felt stronger than she had ever before, her entire weight in his arms as he lowered them to the ground with a bend of his knee. Also by that time, his mouth was no longer on her neck, rather buried in the small amount of cleavage her day dress offered, and there was nothing that could ever compare to that feeling. The atmosphere was broken, however, when she felt her loves hands tugging at her garment and the dress decidedly loosen, which sent bolts of terror, the unfamiliar fear of the unknown, up her spine. 

“Kit,” Ella was hardly audible, more of an excited gasp than a name, and it drew little attention from the owner as he pressed on, a subtle flick of his tongue ghosting across the gap between her (covered) breasts. “Kit,” She wasn’t even sure if she wanted him to stop, it was so right and so spectacular a sensation it made her dizzy. A part of her wished he could continue his actions forever, never wanting it to end. She was just about to pass her misgivings by, cast aside her naïve worrying, when his adventurous hand brushed her inner thigh, her skirts pushed up to the top of her legs, and an electric current, riveted with fear and alarm. “Kit stop.” Her tone was authoritative, if it was still hardly above a whisper, but a sixth sense had told him to expect the word, and subconsciously he had been waiting for it. He ceased his ministrations immediately, stiffening above her, knowing he had overstepped himself. 

“I’m sorry.” He murmured, bowing his head as he helped Ella to sit up, leaving her to fix her clothing by herself. 

“It’s fine.” Her smile was wan and, to her loves dismay, almost apologetic. He did not want her to feel it was necessary to apologise, she had expressed her boundary, that was a perfectly human thing, a perfectly reasonable thing to do. 

“I wasn’t thinking of you, was I?” He was so selfish, despite what she saw him as, he was a selfish lowlife that hardly deserved a blink from someone as good and kind and brave as Ella, but she had chosen to be his and for him to be hers. 

“It’s okay.” She assured him, becoming even more embarrassed of what she would say next. “I enjoyed it.” She admitted, looking down at her curled hands in her lap. “I just.. I have this horrible idea that when the time comes, I won’t know what to do.” How could she make him understand? “I know what happens, obviously!” Ella added in a hurry, her worst fear in that moment was for him to start explaining to her how everything went. “That was a conversation I could have lived without.. Kit, I just don’t know if I’m..” Her cheeks were positively red when she finished the sentence, knowing she didn’t need to fill in the blanks. 

“Ella, I love you.” His voice was empathetic and understanding, even in such a time, but Ella could not look at him. “You are what I want, whatever that entails.” His voice was steady, his constant presence easing her nerves. 

“Yes, but what if I’m not? How could you know? You, you might not feel the same way after…” She wanted him, and he wanted her, that much was obvious, but that could change with familiarity. What if she wasn’t good enough? Ella had faith in Kit beyond anyone else ever had, and she could not fault him for looking elsewhere if she was not pleasing, per se, but she knew the inner turmoil it would cause him and the pain she would suffer if that was the case. 

She had never done this before, and all she wanted was for her and her love to be happy - was that too much to ask? Ella had never been the asking type, she took what the world offered with a smile on her face (no matter what she was accepting) and refused to let the obstacles daunt her, but this she was ready to grovel and beg for. 

“Everything’s so new and I don’t know anything besides the necessary details.” She concluded, eyes watering despite her heroic efforts. “I’ve never done this before, never felt this way or acted this way before, never been with anyone in this way.” His eyes were on her, listening intently. “Or that way. You have, I suppose, and I am fine with that, but I just feel like I’m going to be a disappointment.” She did not have courage in this instance.  
It was only when she saw a hand dart down to her own ones in her lap, an irrational fear of what he might touch in that location springing up for all of three seconds, that she dared to look at him. Their eyes met as he guided her hand to the space between them, a no mans land where both felt safe, but still physical contact, a loving and simplistic gesture intended to reaffirm his trust in her, of his respect of her boundaries and assure her of his continued adoration. 

“Middle ground.” He mused with a smile at her, and Ella’s heart felt as though it glowed. “My love, no matter what happens we’re going to do this together, as one, and I’ll always love you. And have those feelings for you, if I’m completely honest.” He winced at his blunder, before letting it run it’s course. “It doesn’t mean we have to act on them before you’re ready.” It went unsaid that there would come a time when it would become absolutely necessary for them to act on their urges, but both knew that they would be ready well before then. 

“And once, and it wasn’t love.” He confirmed her assumptions with a distant answer, embarrassed even if she wasn’t. Ella took steps to make sure she didn’t theorise about who she was, focusing rather on the way he circled his thumb on her small hands. “And Ella,” Their eyes were locked when he said this, conveying his honesty through the blue depths of his irises. “You could never be a disappointment.”  
_

One day, nearly four months passed, two newly weds sat in the abandoned roof garden in each others arms, perfectly content to watch the falling snow blanket above their heads in the glass dome and the frigid temperatures freeze the collected condensation on the glass panes. 

“Thank you for waiting for me.” Ella said out of nowhere, leaning closer into the now familiar warmth of her husbands body. “Thank you for everything.” 

Kit responded by tightening his old around her, burying his face in the crook of her neck and then her hair. 

“Nothing could have been more worth it.” He answered in all sincerity, his lips suddenly brushing against the place just below and behind her ear, and Ella released a gasp at the unexpected touch. The noise provoked something below his belt, which his wife could feel despite the many layers separating him and her, and he began furiously kissing her shoulders and neck, tasting her skin as he went. It took a few minutes for Ella to reluctantly stop him. 

“Not here, someone will see.” She objected in a hushed tone. “We’re in a glass room." 

"No one will see.” There was so much surety in his voice Ella wanted to believe him, his nipping at her collar bone helping along matters. “There’s hardly any guards in good weather, let alone this.” Their thoughts were very briefly occupied by the snow. “Where else do you suggest?" 

"That hallway is in need of a little life.” Was her breathy response, his miracle-working hands undoing her carefully crafted hair as she suggested it. Then, with the playfulness of a spring animal, she spun around to face him, the ensuing kiss lingering and promising so much more.

“If I catch you I get to kiss you.” Kit bargained in a singsongy voice, bumping his nose against hers as she wriggled away from his embrace and scurrying to the trap door with little more than drawing another breath. He could here her giggles as she descended, chasing her wildly within seconds. Soon, Ella found herself pinned on her back, against a wall and her husbands desire driven body, failing to reassemble her thoughts into clear, legible sentences amid shrieks of giggles. He insisted on teasing her, tickling her sides as he tore at her dress.

“I thought you wanted a kiss.” She laughed as his attentions went lower, Kit disappearing in her skirts, his appearance replaced with the feeling of his wet mouth kissing, nibbling and licking at her inner thighs in a gradual motion.

“I didn’t say where.” There was a degree of awe in his tone as his hot breath ghosted onto her, before kissing her with such abandon and lust he moaned with her. 

“I wish,” Ella emitted a mewling sound not unlike a kitten, her body throbbing from his attentions and she grinded her hips into him, encouraging him further in his escapades, “we had,” his tongue swirled just beside her most sensitive area, tantalising her and she felt her knees go weak “done this,” a sharp intake of breath led her to a groan, her sudden jolt sending his tongue right where she wanted it “sooner." 

"I don’t.” She thought she heard him say, but it was so difficult to distinguish his words from moans, even if she was able to think straight.


End file.
